--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is a safe, nontoxic drug called…" description: "\"There is a safe, nontoxic drug called naloxone that can instantly reverse opioid overdose and prevent most of these deaths. But the drug war interferes..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3df/maia-szalavitz-21394_antidote_there-is-a-safe-nontoxic-drug-called-nal_534473.jpg" --- # There is a safe, nontoxic drug called naloxone that can… ![“There is a safe, nontoxic drug called naloxone that can instantly reverse opioid overdose and prevent most of these deaths. But the drug war interferes with saving overdose victims in two ways: first, because witnesses to overdose fear prosecution, they often don't call for help until it's too…” quote by Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3df/maia-szalavitz-21394_antidote_there-is-a-safe-nontoxic-drug-called-nal_534473.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3df/maia-szalavitz-21394_antidote_there-is-a-safe-nontoxic-drug-called-nal_534473.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3df/maia-szalavitz-21394_antidote_there-is-a-safe-nontoxic-drug-called-nal_534473.jpg) > “There is a safe, nontoxic drug called naloxone that can instantly reverse opioid overdose and prevent most of these deaths. But the drug war interferes with saving overdose victims in two ways: first, because witnesses to overdose fear prosecution, they often don't call for help until it's too late. Second, because the drug war supports the belief that making naloxone available over-the-counter or with opioid prescriptions would encourage drug use, the antidote is available only through harm reduction programs like needle exchanges or in some state programs aimed at drug users.” [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Naloxone can reverse overdoses instantly, but legal and social barriers prevent timely use, causing preventable deaths. **In simple terms:** Naloxone saves lives, but fear and policy block its use. Key Takeaway Advocate for broader, stigma‑free access to naloxone. Themes public health policy harm reduction drug policy overdose prevention Mood urgent empathetic Type advocacy informational When to use this quote - Emergency responders - community members - family members - healthcare providers - policy makers Key Concepts Naloxone opioid crisis legal barriers stigma harm reduction programs Questions to Reflect On - How can we change public perception to reduce fear of calling help? - What policies would most effectively expand naloxone access? A Different Perspective Even with naloxone, systemic issues like addiction treatment gaps and socioeconomic factors still drive overdose rates. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Drug](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drug/) [Drug use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drug-use/) [Drug User](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drug-user/) [Drug Users](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drug-users/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Harm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harm/) [Opioids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opioids/) [Overdose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overdose/) [Prosecution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prosecution/) [Saving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saving/) [Support](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/support/) [Too late](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/too-late/) [Victim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victim/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [War on drugs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war-on-drugs/) [Wine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wine/) ## Related quotes > [Because of the war on drugs, pain patients are treated with skepticism and pain doctors live in fear of being prosecuted for overprescribing. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/because-of-the-war-on-drugs-pain-patients-are-treated-with-skepticism/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [“Sometimes, this disapproval of how you are managing your pain crosses over to disbelief that you are in as much pain as you say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-j-mcalister/sometimes-this-disapproval-of-how-you-are-managing-your-pain-crosses/) Murray J. McAlister > [“I currently take Lortab, which is a combination of acetaminophen and hydrocodone. I’d rather not take this medication, or any medication for that matter,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-moore/i-currently-take-lortab-which-is-a-combination-of-acetaminophen-and/) [Alison Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-moore/) > [“There are a lot of victims when it comes to addiction. I know there's an overdose epidemic. We see those faces. But then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-marsh/there-are-a-lot-of-victims-when-it-comes-to-addiction-i-know-there-s/) Donna Marsh > [We lose thousands of our fellow Americans every year to opioid abuse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-lose-thousands-of-our-fellow-americans-every-year-to-opioid-abuse/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [“I take opioids to treat chronic pain. Stigmatizing them will harm me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonya-huber/i-take-opioids-to-treat-chronic-pain-stigmatizing-them-will-harm-me/) Sonya Huber > [“the Times says there's a heroin epidemic, Malone thinks, which is only an epidemic of course because now white people are dying. Whites started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-winslow/the-times-says-there-s-a-heroin-epidemic-malone-thinks-which-is-only/) [Don Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-winslow/) > [I have always been very interested in the issue of drugs, because as much as illegal drugs are prosecuted, if you think of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pedro-reyes/i-have-always-been-very-interested-in-the-issue-of-drugs-because-as/) [Pedro Reyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pedro-reyes/) > [“I will be living with chronic pain for the rest of my life. I don’t have the mobility, energy or life options I used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonya-huber/i-will-be-living-with-chronic-pain-for-the-rest-of-my-life-i-don-t/) Sonya Huber > [“Government agencies are trying to get doctors to cut back on prescribing opioids. I understand that they need to do something about the epidemic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-moore/government-agencies-are-trying-to-get-doctors-to-cut-back-on/) [Alison Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-moore/) > [We have a massive heroin opioid epidemic problem in America, part of that is because of drugs coming from the cartels from the south.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-ryan/we-have-a-massive-heroin-opioid-epidemic-problem-in-america-part-of/) [Paul Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-ryan/) > [Grains are essentially sugar with enough opioids to make them addictive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lierre-keith/grains-are-essentially-sugar-with-enough-opioids-to-make-them/) [Lierre Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lierre-keith/) > [“In the debate over opioid addiction, there’s one group we aren’t hearing from: chronic pain patients, many of whom need to use the drugs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-smith-2/in-the-debate-over-opioid-addiction-there-s-one-group-we-aren-t/) S. E. Smith > [“When your kid’s dying from a brain tumor or leukemia, the whole community shows up. They bring casseroles. They pray for you. They send…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-quinones/when-your-kid-s-dying-from-a-brain-tumor-or-leukemia-the-whole/) [Sam Quinones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-quinones/) > [Opioid replacement therapy is the standard evidence-based model to treat people with acute opioid addiction, and that is unassailable according to every research study…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-j-kennedy/opioid-replacement-therapy-is-the-standard-evidence-based-model-to/) [Patrick J. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-j-kennedy/) ## More by Maia Szalavitz > [Punishment by definition isn't going to help. So what you need to do is to help people to change and recover is to help…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/punishment-by-definition-isn-t-going-to-help-so-what-you-need-to-do/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [There's traditionally been two different ways of seeing addiction. Either it's a sin and you're a horrible bad person and you are just choosing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/there-s-traditionally-been-two-different-ways-of-seeing-addiction/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [The thing about our drug laws is that they're not based on science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/the-thing-about-our-drug-laws-is-that-they-re-not-based-on-science/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [Marijuana is not not harmful, but is the least harmful psychoactive substance that we have, with the possible exception of caffeine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/marijuana-is-not-not-harmful-but-is-the-least-harmful-psychoactive/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [When President Nixon declared war on drugs on June 17, 1971, about 110 people per 100,000 in the population were incarcerated. Today, we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/when-president-nixon-declared-war-on-drugs-on-june-17-1971-about-110/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [Because of the war on drugs, pain patients are treated with skepticism and pain doctors live in fear of being prosecuted for overprescribing. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/because-of-the-war-on-drugs-pain-patients-are-treated-with-skepticism/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [I think our drug laws need to be made scientifically, as best as possible, recognizing that values will always be part of that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/i-think-our-drug-laws-need-to-be-made-scientifically-as-best-as/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [Addiction is when you fall in love with a drug instead of a child or a lover and the learning that takes part in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/addiction-is-when-you-fall-in-love-with-a-drug-instead-of-a-child-or/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [We should not be putting kids in cages and hoping that is going to fix their psychological problems of any type.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/we-should-not-be-putting-kids-in-cages-and-hoping-that-is-going-to/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [I don't have kids, but I've often noticed when people first become parents they seem to completely forget their own adolescence and they start…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/i-don-t-have-kids-but-i-ve-often-noticed-when-people-first-become/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [In order for people to recover, we can't just say 'love is all we need.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/in-order-for-people-to-recover-we-can-t-just-say-love-is-all-we-need/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [If you're worried about a kid and drug use, the safest, best thing to do is individual counseling or family therapy, none of which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/if-you-re-worried-about-a-kid-and-drug-use-the-safest-best-thing-to/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [Incarceration is as useful for addiction as it is for diabetes - i.e., not useful and potentially harmful, particularly for kids.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/incarceration-is-as-useful-for-addiction-as-it-is-for-diabetes-i-e/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [In a criminal justice setting, it's very hard to create a therapeutic environment where people do feel safe, but the real important thing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/in-a-criminal-justice-setting-it-s-very-hard-to-create-a-therapeutic/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) > [We absolutely should legalize marijuana.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-szalavitz/we-absolutely-should-legalize-marijuana/) [Maia Szalavitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) [Explore all 29 Maia Szalavitz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-szalavitz/) ## More Antidote quotes > [Every well-thought-out rebuttal to dogma, every scrap of intelligent logic, every absurdist reduction of some bullying stance is the antidote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-sanders/every-well-thought-out-rebuttal-to-dogma-every-scrap-of-intelligent/) [George Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-sanders/) > [The safe and general antidote against sorrow is employment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-safe-and-general-antidote-against-sorrow-is-employment/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [FAITH is the only known antidote for FAILURE!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/faith-is-the-only-known-antidote-for-failure/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [Gratitude is the antidote to bitterness and resentment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-j-ryan/gratitude-is-the-antidote-to-bitterness-and-resentment/) [M. J. Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-j-ryan/) > [“Relevance is both an antidote to avoid and a method for driving disruption.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-spitz/relevance-is-both-an-antidote-to-avoid-and-a-method-for-driving/) [Roger Spitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-spitz/) > [If one is experiencing poverty, practice ordinary and extreme generosity - this is the antidote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jetsunma-ahkon-lhamo/if-one-is-experiencing-poverty-practice-ordinary-and-extreme/) [Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jetsunma-ahkon-lhamo/) > [Beto is banking on his sacharrine positivity as the ultimate antidote to President Trump's honest saltiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kennedy-montgomery/beto-is-banking-on-his-sacharrine-positivity-as-the-ultimate-antidote/) [Lisa Kennedy Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kennedy-montgomery/) > [Every evil has its good, and every ill an antidote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-dix/every-evil-has-its-good-and-every-ill-an-antidote/) [Dorothea Dix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-dix/) > [A round of golf is the ideal antidote to stress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-forsyth/a-round-of-golf-is-the-ideal-antidote-to-stress/) [Bruce Forsyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-forsyth/) > [Medical men have searched the world for remedies, desiring an antidote. Chiropractors find the cause in the person ailing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-j-palmer/medical-men-have-searched-the-world-for-remedies-desiring-an-antidote/) [B. J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-j-palmer/) > [Hope that is the only antidote to fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-armstrong/hope-that-is-the-only-antidote-to-fear/) [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) > [Music can minister to minds diseased, pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow, raze out the written troubles of the brain, and with its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/music-can-minister-to-minds-diseased-pluck-from-the-memory-a-rooted/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Both to the rich and poor, wine is the happy antidote for sorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/euripides/both-to-the-rich-and-poor-wine-is-the-happy-antidote-for-sorrow/) [Euripides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/euripides/) > [Conservatism is the antidote to tyranny. It's the only one. It's based on thousands of years of human experience. There is nothing narrow about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/conservatism-is-the-antidote-to-tyranny-it-s-the-only-one-it-s-based/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The antidote for fear of failure is not success but small doses of failure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/the-antidote-for-fear-of-failure-is-not-success-but-small-doses-of/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) Browse all 412 Antidote quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There is a safe, nontoxic drug called naloxone that can instantly reverse opioid overdose and prevent most of these deaths. But the drug war interferes with saving overdose victims in two ways: first, because witnesses to overdose fear prosecution, they often don't call for help until it's too late. 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